This week I was expecting to receive the first of the Millbrook Planets mattresses for testing, but for some odd reason I ended up being supplied the Reims, a mattress from the French Collection.

Another surprise was that I wasn’t supplied a base for this mattress. Instead I was given a bedframe, as we didn’t receive the divan base from our warehouse in time. Not phased by this, I set to work getting my mattress and newly acquired bedframe into what I’ve now dubbed ‘the sleep laboratory’ (my bedroom).

The Millbrook Reims mattress

Millbrook call the Reims a ‘luxury divan’, with an emphasis on quality fabrics and affordability. It’s not often that a bed manufacturer can reach a compromise between quality and low price, but in this case, it seems to have been made possible. At Bedstar you can pick up a Millbrook Reims 4FT6 Double divan set for less than £600, which is very reasonable for a bed from this manufacturer.

The mattress is a pocketsprung unit with 1260 pocket springs in the Kingsize model. I could try and work out how many springs I got in my Double mattress, but it doesn’t seem important. All you need to know about the pocket springs in this mattress is that they feel fantastic. I always make a habit of lying on a new mattress before placing it on its base (or frame in this case) and the feel of the Reims was awesome.

The Reims mattress is a medium tension mattress and the fillings are a mixture of soft white fibres and cotton that give a very soft feel. As with most Millbrook mattresses, the Reims has double side stitching to the mattress borders, chrome air vents and flag stitched handles. The interliner is hypoallergenic (which is a major advantage at this time of the year) and hand tufts have been used to keep everything held together.

The Divan Base

I didn’t get to experience the Reims mattress and divan base together, but I did manage to sneak a look at the bases when they arrived into stock last Friday. The base is fairly standard for a Millbrook bed. It has a fully aprung edge and the usual choice between no drawers, 2 drawers or 4 drawers (with the 2 and 4 drawer units having Conti options available as well). Brass linking bars are used on the split bases to hold the bases together and ther are headboard fixing holes in either end of the bases. Chrome double wheel castors have also been included to help make the bed easier to move around.

Overall impression

If your budget can stretch a little further you may want to consider the next model up in the range (The Monaco, which we’ll be reviewing soon), but for people on a budget of less than £600 will find the Reims to be a very high quality bed for a reasonable price, which is exactly what Millbrook set out to achieve.

Technically, this is a middle of the road, easy-to-understand mattress with no outrageous bells and whistles. Here’s what you get:

• A range of sizes between Single and Super Kingsize.
• 800 pocket springs.
• A hypo-allergenic interliner.
• Hand tufted design
• Woven damask cover

So what does this mean for the average sleep-deprived, worn-out mattress owner?

First of all, the Millbrook Rennes is a well-rounded mattress for its price-point (£250 for the Double). Millbrook have mastered the art of building a medium tension mattress that feels soft and offers unparalleled support, right across the sleeping surface.

Secondly, the Rennes has a couple of add-on features you don’t have to have, but are great nonetheless. A prime example is the hypoallergenic fillings – great for keeping dust mites at bay and excellent for asthma sufferers like me.

Thirdly, the Millbrook Rennes mattress looks amazing. Millbrook have spent extra money including jiffy tie tufts with felt washers and a premium damask cover, making the mattress feel a lot more exclusive than its price suggests.

My overall verdict? I enjoyed sleeping on this mattress. I think Millbrook have come up with a great value product with a high-end feel that anyone would be happy sleeping on.

 At the heart of every Millbrook divan bed is the pocket spring system used in the mattress. Each manufactured coil is precisely coiled to the correct tension before been sewn into its own cotton pocket. This type of spring system allows for individual support across the mattress and contours to the sleeper’s body shape giving restful nights sleep.

 Millbrooks traditional methods and uncompromising high standards mean each mattress wall is side stitched by hand, this procedure ensure the pocket springs are secured correctly in the mattress and will not distort over time.

 All Millbrook divan beds have a fully sprung zonal divan base incorporating two levels of spring torsion giving a supportive base for the mattress. Each Millbrook divan base. is made from solid timber to carry the weight of the sumptuous mattress and load-bearing joints are secured and glued by hand for lasting strength.

 Millbrook divan beds bring you a unique combination of  Traditional Excellence & Contemporary Elegance offering the ultimate in sleep luxury. Millbrooks latest range of divan beds showcase the uncompromising craftsmanship that makes every Millbrook bed special.